Jessica looked over my shoulder and stared at Duke.
“You can trust him. He’s my best friend,” I assured her.
“Wow,” she murmured and then she realized what she had said aloud. The glow from the bar’s outdoor lights illuminated the color suffusing her cheeks.
“Focus, Jessica,” I said with a wry snort.
“So, we kind of went to a party,” she said and then paused.
“And?” I went on.
“A party at a warehouse. There was a light show and music and…”
“Drugs?” Duke supplied, his voice harsh.
“Yeah, drugs.” Jessica winced. “We didn’t take anything, I swear. But we were dancing and the cops showed up. Everyone scattered like roaches, only Waverly and I got separated. She’s with Dylan, though.”
She unzipped her leather belt bag and pulled out a cellphone and handed it to me. “Her phone. She asked me to hold it for her.”
“So, my sister is out there with some strange kid named Dylan who she met at a rave, and you have her phone and she hasn’t called us?” I asked, my ire rising to the surface.
“Not some strange kid,” Jessica said. “Dylan.”
“Is that supposed to mean something to me?” I snapped.
“Dylan’s her boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend? Waverly doesn’t have a boyfriend,” I scoffed.
“Oh, she has a boyfriend,” Jessica insisted. “And they’re together right now. I called his phone, but it went to voicemail.”
“And he hasn’t checked in with you?” I demanded. “I do not like this. I do not like this at all.”
“Do you have any clue where they might be?” Duke asked.
“There’s a diner on the other side of town called Boots. It’s kind of their spot.”
They have a spot?
“Why did you track me down?” I asked. “Why didn’t you go to Boots yourself or better yet, wait for her to get into contact with you?”
“Boots is…well, it’s in a part of town I’m scared to go to alone.”
“And this punk took my sister?” I shrieked.
A hand settled on my shoulder and I immediately sank into Duke’s strong chest, my back pressed to his front.
“Did you drive here?” Duke asked.
She shook her head. “I took an Uber.”
“Where do your parents think you are right now?” I demanded.
Jessica nibbled her lip, suddenly looking a lot younger than she was. “Your place.”
“Son of a bitch,” I muttered.
“I’m going to have one of my brothers take you home. I want to make sure you get home safely,” Duke said.
“Oh, that’s okay, I’ll—”
“Not up for discussion, kid,” Duke growled. He stepped away from me and went inside the bar.
“I’m in a lot of trouble, aren’t I?” Jessica asked.
“Yup.”
“You’re going to tell my parents, aren’t you?”
“Yup.”
“You’re going to slaughter Waverly,” she said.
“And then I’m going to find a way to bring her back to life just so I can kill her again.”
“I thought, maybe, because you’re her sister and not her mom, you’d be cooler than my parents about this. Clearly, I was wrong.”
“You guys just don’t get it, do you?”
“Get what?”
“I’ve been a teenager. I’ve lied and snuck around. I’ve gone to parties. I know you want your freedom, but you can’t lie about where you’re at. God forbid something really bad happened to either one of you tonight.”
Was I overreacting? Maybe. But Waverly meant everything to me.
“If we’d told you the truth about the rave, would you have let her go?” Jessica demanded.
“Not the point,” I stated.
“Kind of the point.” She cocked her head to the side. “Are you really mad about the party, or are you mad because she didn’t tell you about Dylan?”
My gaze narrowed. “Thin ice, Jessica. Thin fucking ice.”
A few moments later Duke returned with Crow and Savage.
“Crow is going to give you a lift home,” Duke said as they strode toward us.
“On a motorcycle?” Jessica’s eyes widened in excitement.
“Fuck no,” Duke barked. “He’ll drive you in Mia’s car.”
Crow swirled a keyring around his finger. “Let’s go.”
Jessica dogged after him like a lost puppy.
“We better get going,” Duke said. “I don’t want Waverly and Sheet Stain to go somewhere else and force us to spend the entire night tracking them down.”
I nodded.
“My bike or Duke’s?” Savage asked.
“Duke’s, I guess.” I blew out a furious breath of air. “Weren’t you getting frisky with Elizabeth?”
“I was,” Savage drawled as he turned to look at Duke. “This fucker interrupted me right when it was about to get good.”
I wrinkled my nose. “I don’t want to know.”
“I got her number. She’ll meet me later. So all is not lost.”
“Glad to hear it,” I remarked dryly.
The three of us trekked to the corner of the parking lot with all the motorcycles. Duke handed me a spare helmet and then climbed onto his bike. I clasped the strap around my chin and then got on the bike behind him, scooting close and wrapping my arms around him.
He tensed ever so slightly and then relaxed.
“You know where this place is?” I called out.
“Yeah,” he yelled back as the engine of the motorcycle came to life. “Hang on.”
We zoomed out of the parking lot. It wasn’t the first time I’d been on the back of Duke’s bike. I was comfortable there. Like I belonged.
I’d ridden on the back of Savage’s bike, but it wasn’t the same. It had always been different with Duke, and that was why I’d been terrified of ever letting myself think about the possibilities of what we could become.
The three of us had been friends since we were kids. They were my family. We worked well as a group, the three of us—but only because we’d sworn not to let anything romantic get in the way.
But one night a few weeks ago, Duke and I crossed a line.
And I wasn’t ready for it to change everything. It wasn’t just about Duke and me. It was about my friendship with Savage. But it was also about Duke, Savage and me as a collective unit.
My situation with Duke was a mess.
Now my home life was a mess.
We pulled up to the curb just outside Boots, and Duke cut the engine. Savage rolled in behind us and did the same. It was clear the neighborhood was rough. The sidewalk was cracked, trash littered the gutter, and there were a few feral cats skulking around the alley. Half a block down, there were seedy looking men gathered in a cluster outside a liquor store.
“What the hell is she thinking?” I demanded, climbing off Duke’s bike.
“Hormones.” Duke grimaced. “Speaking of. Gimme a minute.”
“Why would you need—” My gaze dropped to his lap, realizing that I’d been curled around him, the heat of me pressed against his back. “Got it.”
I quickly turned away to give him the illusion of privacy.
“How do you wanna do this?” Savage asked approaching me, a gleam in his eyes. “You want me to go in there and scare the shit out of this kid?”
“Tempting,” I said with a flicker of a smile. “But no. Let me handle this.”
I walked into Boots first, Savage and Duke trailing behind me. Heads turned in our direction and there was a momentary pause in conversation before the diner roared to life again.
As I surveyed the room, Duke pointed at the booth in the far corner. Waverly was easy to spot because of her bright red hair. She was sitting with her back to the door so she had no idea that I’d arrived.
I strutted up to the table and casually slid into the seat across from her.
My sister was in the middle of sipping a soda through her straw when her blue eyes—heavily caked with black eyeliner and shadow—widened at the sight of me. She immediately began to cough as she set her drink aside.
“Willa!” She hastily grabbed a napkin and dabbed her watering eyes.
“Fun night?” I asked, reaching across the table to pluck a fry from her dinner. I dunked it into the blob of ketchup on her plate and then stuck it in my mouth.
“What are you doing here?” she demanded.
As I swallowed my French fry, I finally noticed what she was wearing. My mouth gaped. “That’s mine.”
She glanced down at herself and then quickly looked at me. “I borrowed it.”
“Borrow implies that you asked. I don’t recall you asking if you could borrow my leather corset.”
Her mouth pinched. “You would’ve said no.”
“Damn right. You’re fifteen years old.”
“I’m old enough to dress myself. What crawled up your ass and died?”
“What crawled up my ass, you ask? How about the fact that you lied to me about spending the night at your best friend’s house when you really went to a rave so you could meet up with your boyfriend.”
Her eyes widened.
“Next time, don’t leave your phone.” I reached into the tiny purse I wore slung across my body, fished out her cell, and placed it in front of her.
She grasped it. I noted the bright red nail polish on her fingertips. When she’d left to go to Jessica’s for the night, they’d been painted black.
“Next time?” Her hand curled around her cell.
“Right, what was I thinking?” I clocked my forehead with the palm of my hand. “There won’t be a next time. You’re grounded until you’re thirty.”
“You don’t have the authority to ground me,” she lashed out.
“Your best friend tracked me down. Not Mom. As far as you’re concerned, I’m judge, jury, and executioner. Speaking of executions…where is this boyfriend of yours?”
“Bathroom,” she muttered. “Please don’t embarrass me.”
I raised my brows. “Like you have any grounds to make requests here.”
A dark-haired teenage boy wearing jeans, a black T-shirt, and black Converse strode out from the back hallway into the dining room. He paused but a moment when he saw me and stood taller when Savage and Duke rose from their stools at the diner counter. They corralled him and shepherded him toward the table without a word.
He slid into the seat next to Waverly, who didn’t move over for him. Instead, she tucked herself into his side. He raised his arm and placed it around her shoulder.
My gaze narrowed at him.
Calm green eyes peered back at me. Not pugnacious, not ready for a fight. But merely staking his claim.
“Dylan, I presume?” I asked.
He inclined his head. “You must be Willa.”
“In the flesh.”
Duke and Savage pulled up two vacant chairs from a nearby table, turned them backward, and sat down next to us. Dylan still didn’t look uncomfortable despite two inked, muscley bikers making their presence known.
“What happened to your lip?” Waverly asked Savage.
“Bar brawl.” Savage shrugged.
Waverly rolled her eyes. “Shocker.”
“Don’t start, squirt,” Savage snapped.
Before the two of them could get into it, I interjected, “So, here’s what we’re going to do. I’m going to ask some questions, and if you answer them to my satisfaction, I won’t drag you out of here and make a scene.”
Waverly didn’t move, and then suddenly she blew out a puff of air. “Okay. Sounds fair.”
“Why did you lie to me about sleeping over at Jessica’s?” I asked.
“I didn’t lie,” she said. “I just didn’t add that we were going to head to a rave before I slept over.”
“She said her parents thought she was sleeping over at our place. So…try again.”
Waverly sighed and rolled her eyes. “I knew you wouldn’t let me go.”
“Correct.” I looked at Dylan. “But there’s more, yeah? I had no idea you even existed until tonight.”
“I wasn’t ready to tell you about Dylan.” Waverly sat up and glared at Duke. “I can’t believe you told her.”
The breath froze in my lungs, and I slowly turned my head to look at Duke. “You knew?”
Duke rubbed his chin. “I knew.”
“And you didn’t tell me?” I snapped before returning my focus to my sister. I’d yell at Duke later. “Why didn’t you tell me about Dylan?”
“Why are you talking about me like I’m not here?” Dylan asked.
“Dude,” I said to him. “You really want to be quiet right now.”
Savage glared at Dylan who showed no signs of fear, but he did immediately clamp his mouth shut.
“Jessica found me at Shelly’s to bring me your phone that you lost at a rave you weren’t supposed to be at with a boy who looks old enough to get a tattoo without parental consent!”
My voice had risen to the point that we were actively drawing attention. The waitress behind the counter stopped wiping up a spill and stared at me.
“I think it’s time to go,” Duke said, standing up from his chair. Savage did the same.
“I’m so pissed at you right now,” I seethed. “You didn’t tell me she had a boyfriend!”
“I begged him not to, okay?” Waverly said.
“Why?” I demanded.
“Can we please talk about this at home?” Waverly asked, pitching her voice low. She suddenly sounded in control, and not at all like a recalcitrant teenager.
I took a deep breath and stood up.
Dylan rose from his seat and then held out a hand to help her.
“Shit,” I muttered. “Did you have to bring her here? This isn’t exactly the safest part of town.”
“My uncle owns the place,” Dylan explained. “Everyone in the neighborhood knows me. We’re safe here.”
“But I don’t know you, and right now I’m the only one that matters,” I stated.
Dylan’s eyes were steady and earnest. “I’d never put Waverly in danger.”
“You took her to the rave,” I pointed out.
Waverly piped up, “It was my idea. He didn’t want to go, but I said I was going, so he came to make sure nothing happened to me.” She stood in front of Dylan to protect him from my wrath. She was a good six inches shorter than him, so it was a comical gesture.
My heart softened when he stepped closer to her and wrapped his arms around her, obviously not caring about anything in the moment except her.
I was starting to have a smidgen of respect for him. But I didn’t know this kid. And I didn’t know how far their relationship had advanced.
“I’m taking my sister home,” I said.
Dylan released Waverly. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
Waverly nodded and then stood on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek.
Savage headed the pack and Waverly followed him. Duke and I brought up the rear.
“You knew?” I asked him again, quietly this time. “And you didn’t tell me? You broke the code.”
“You’re lecturing me about the code?” he replied, equally as quiet.
I flinched.
The four of us stepped out into the night. Savage walked over to his bike and picked up the spare helmet and handed it to Waverly. She took it and put it on.
“I’m sorry you were worried,” she said to me.
“But not sorry about lying,” I said.
“I…” she sighed. “I don’t know what to say.”
I needed another ride to clear my head. Why had Duke kept Waverly’s confidence? Why had Waverly asked him not to tell me? Why did she keep it from me? Keeping it from Mom, I understood. Keeping it from me? No.
My sister was growing up. I just wanted to be there to make sure she made good choices along the way.
“Hey,” I said to her as she climbed onto the back of Savage’s bike.
She lifted her gaze to mine.
“I’m sorry you felt like you couldn’t tell me something. Something really important.”
I didn’t wait for her to reply. I wanted to let that sink in as they drove us home.
“We’ll see you guys there in a bit,” Duke said. “Willa and I have some shit we need to talk about.”
“Fun times,” Savage said.
“Did you know that Waverly had a boyfriend?” I asked Savage.
“Nope,” Savage replied.
“Good. At least one person hasn’t screwed me over tonight,” I said lightly.
Savage cranked the engine and a few moments later, he pulled away from the curb, Waverly’s arms around his middle. I stared off in the distance, watching the taillights of Savage’s bike fade into the darkness.
“She skipped school a few weeks ago,” he said.
“I remember,” I said, facing him. “She called you.”
“Yeah, she called me. I picked her up and put the fear of God into the kids she skipped with.”
“Was Dylan one of those kids?” I asked.
“No.” He rubbed the back of his neck.
“What? Out with it.”
“Dylan is her tutor.”
“Excuse me?”
“She was having trouble in some of her subjects, so the school assigned her a tutor—Dylan.”
I blinked. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying? That Waverly is the bad influence?”
“I wouldn’t say bad influence… She’s rebellious and pushing boundaries, but not a bad influence.”
I swallowed. “Is she—is she doing drugs?”
“No.”
I let out a slow exhale.
“I wanted her to feel like she could come to an adult that wasn’t going to rag on her, you know? So that if she really got herself into some shit, she would feel okay reaching out instead of trying to handle it herself.”
“She could’ve talked to me,” I muttered.
He wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me to him. “Hate to break it to you, but you’re more like Waverly’s mom than Angel is. Which means she’s going to hide shit from you because that’s what kids do with their parents.”
“Shouldn’t the school have called to let me know that Waverly needed a tutor?”
“They called Angel.”
“Mommy Dearest forgot to pass along that message,” I said bitterly. “And Waverly didn’t say anything.”
“You know what you’re really pissed about, don’t you?”
“What?” I demanded.
He smiled softly. “That she’s growing up.”